Shloka 26

Adhyāya 69: Strategic duels under Bhīṣma’s command

Virāṭa–Bhīṣma; Arjuna–Aśvatthāmā; Bhīma–Duryodhana; Abhimanyu–Lakṣmaṇa

Devanagari script

एतच्छुतं मया तात ऋषीणां भावितात्मनाम्‌ | वासुदेव॑ कथयतां समवाये पुरातनम्‌

Transliteration

etac chrutaṃ mayā tāta ṛṣīṇāṃ bhāvitātmanām | vāsudevaṃ kathayatāṃ samavāye purātanam ||

Translation

भीष्म ने कहा—तात! यह मैंने उन भावितात्मा, शुद्ध अन्तःकरण वाले ऋषियों के मुख से सुना है। प्राचीन काल में महर्षियों की एक पवित्र सभा जुटी थी, जहाँ वे भगवान् वासुदेव की पुरातन महिमा-कथा कह रहे थे; उन्हीं से मैंने ये बातें सुनीं।

Word by Word

• {'etat': 'this (teaching/account)', 'śrutam': 'heard

• received by oral tradition', 'mayā': 'by me', 'tāta': 'dear child

• affectionate address (to the listener)', 'ṛṣīṇām': 'of the seers/sages', 'bhāvitātmanām': 'of those with cultivated/purified selves

• self-controlled', 'vāsudevam': 'Vāsudeva (Kṛṣṇa), the divine person being praised', 'kathayatām': 'of those narrating/reciting', 'samavāye': 'in an assembly

• in a gathering', 'purātanam': 'ancient

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma
• Vāsudeva (Kṛṣṇa)
• Ṛṣis (sages/seers)
• Samavāya (assembly/gathering)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse grounds the forthcoming account in a trustworthy lineage: teachings about Vāsudeva are presented as received through an ancient assembly of self-purified sages, emphasizing ethical authority, disciplined minds, and faithful transmission.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhīṣma tells his listener that what he is about to relate is not personal invention; he once heard it in a venerable gathering where great ṛṣis were narrating the ancient glory of Vāsudeva, and he is now repeating that received tradition.